Education

The school year began on Tuesday at the John M. Marshall Elementary School in East Hampton, where 505 students were enrolled as of earlier this week.

East Hampton High School students and staff adjusted fairly easily to their first smartphone-free day Tuesday, the principal, Sara Smith, told the school board, with the opening day of the year serving as a sort of test for a policy mandated by the state but long planned by the administration.

In the spring, the first cohort of dual-language enrichment program students graduated from the John M. Marshall Elementary School in East Hampton after having spent their entire time at the school being taught in both English and Spanish. They will begin middle school next week.

School starts next week on the South Fork: Tuesday in East Hampton, Amagansett, and Bridgehampton; Wednesday in Springs, Sag Harbor, Sagaponack, and Wainscott, and next Thursday in Montauk.

It will be up to the community which projects rise to the top of the list as the East Hampton School District begins to firm up plans for a bond referendum of more than $60 million it will put on the May 2026 ballot, and on Tuesday night the superintendent, Adam Fine, announced four workshops designed to gather that input over the next few months.

Smokey Buns, a conveniently located burger joint, and Scoop and Waffle, a sweet little ice cream spot, off Park Place in East Hampton, were the perfect spots for the students of The Star’s Summer Academy to have a casual meal together on a Friday afternoon and try their hands at restaurant reviewing.

This installment features three books beloved by your favorite celebrities who you may not know are bookworms: Emma Watson, Taylor Swift, and Ariana Grande.

The Amagansett School Board issued a notice on Monday that Wayne Gauger, the board’s president, had resigned effective immediately. The board’s vice president, Addie Slater-Davison, has assumed the position of president and will hold the title until a new president is elected at the board’s July 2026 reorganization meeting. 

Hampton Racquet and Project Most will serve up a kick-off benefit for the brand-new John T. Graham Scholarship Fund on Sunday. 

Organizacion Latino Americana of Eastern Long Island has named the six recipients of its scholarship awards, and among them are four recent East Hampton graduates: Briana Chavez, Vanessa Salome Galindo, Gabriela Jacome, and Bradley Rodriguez. 

“Our season has been an amazing season,” John Ryan Jr., the town’s chief lifeguard, said of East Hampton Town’s junior lifeguard program, which teaches children ages 9 to 15 the importance of water safety and ocean awareness.

The East Hampton Town Trustees heard a pitch for the construction of a fifth and sixth oyster reef in Three Mile Harbor on Monday, a plan they quickly approved. 

On Wednesday, Goat on a Boat Puppet Theatre will host a puppet-making workshop at LTV Studios, at 75 Industrial Road in Wainscott, from 5 to 7 p.m.

The East Hampton Library will host its annual Children’s Fair on Sunday at Herrick Park, with festivities including carnival rides, games, crafts, performances, food, and raffles.

Alexander Svarre, a 17-year-old rising senior at Manhattan’s Dwight School, has been spending his last summer before graduation as an intern for the East Hampton Village mayor’s office, working on a very specific task: documenting the memorial plaques under 492 trees located throughout the village.

The Children’s Museum of the East End in Bridgehampton will host a panel talk featuring three pediatric specialists on Friday, Aug. 15.

“This is one of those rare opportunities when you don’t have to ask taxpayers for money to do the things that improve students’ lives,” the district superintendent said of the newly paid down construction bond.

For her just-released science-fiction novel, “Black Hole Highway,” Georgia Flight, an East Hampton High School English teacher, drew inspiration from stories like “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” and “Star Wars,” and the work of Kurt Vonnegut — whimsical, fun to read, and not weighed down by extensive passages of “dreary” world-building.

Student artwork inspired by Springs, the Mermen at Guild Hall.

Organizacion Latino Americana of Eastern Long Island has launched a scholarship initiative with seven Latino-owned businesses to support “the future of East End Latino youth,” according to the nonprofit.

Cindy and Joe Realmuto have “been an instrumental component of Project Most since its inception,” its executive director, Rebecca Taylor, said. They will be celebrated at a summer benefit on Sunday at Moby’s in East Hampton.

The Little Mermen, a Disney tribute band, will perform hits from favorite films like “Frozen,” “The Lion King,” “Encanto,” and, of course, “The Little Mermaid” on Aug. 6 at 4:30 at Guild Hall.

The Springs School District and its superintendent are the targets of a wrongful-termination lawsuit filed by a former administrator who claims she was fired for refusing to carry out tasks she found unethical and harmful to students.

In September, the Eleanor Whitmore Early Childhood Center will officially accept its first group of infants between 12 and 18 months — a longtime aspiration of the center’s board, and its namesake.

In a move championed by educators, dreaded by many students, and mandated by Gov. Kathy Hochul, the East Hampton School Board last week officially approved a ban on student use of smartphones and internet-enabled devices during the school day. It will take effect at the start of the school year.

“Goosebumps” author at East Hampton Library, raptors at the Montauk Lighthouse, Dance Theatre of Harlem at Guild Hall, the Children's Museum of the East End's Family Fair, and more coming up for families and kids.

On July 3, Alexandra Giambruno — known to her young patrons as “Mrs. G” — worked her last day as the head of children’s services at the East Hampton Library, a position she had held for 22 years.

Circus artists in Guild Hall’s next KidFest show, a fun night for kids with Project Most, a fine-arts camp in East Hampton, and a screening of shorts by young filmmakers.

While it might not be ideal for spur-of-the-moment registration, I-Tri’s Hamptons Youth Triathlon on Saturday morning should give spectators plenty to cheer for.

“You, the class of 2025, hold a special place in my heart, and in my career,” Sara Smith, the principal of East Hampton High School, told the graduating seniors as they sat together under a large white tent on the school’s lawn for their commencement ceremony last Friday evening. “You entered ninth grade as I entered as principal, and in many ways we grew into our current positions together.”